


Wilson - Latta // December 18, 2014

by AriannaLaufeyson



Category: Hockey - Fandom, NHL - Fandom, Washington Capitals - Fandom
Genre: Engaged AU, M/M, Winter Classic time period, accidental engagement announcement, latts and willy are dorks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-25
Updated: 2015-12-25
Packaged: 2018-05-08 21:07:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,263
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5513348
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AriannaLaufeyson/pseuds/AriannaLaufeyson
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Latta piped up next with a furrowed brow, "Why do you think I'd get the ring?" It was a stupid question, considering he really was the one wearing the ring, but it was enough to get the team off of their backs.</p>
<p>They were safe, for now.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Wilson - Latta // December 18, 2014

This was definitely  _not_ how the team was supposed to find out. Ward was supposed to be announcing an engagement, not Michael and Tom! 

 

They were on the plane, leaving New York and heading home to D.C. The Winter Classic was only a week away and the Capitals were on fire. Win after win, they felt confident and the atmosphere was filled with good vibes. The plane was quiet, save for some soft conversations being held between a few of them. It wasn't very hard for everyone to hear Chimmer chirping Ward. 

 

"Got engaged.. Got engaged.." He muttered in between fake coughs, snickering as Ward rolled his eyes playfully. All of the attention was on number forty-two, until Troy spoke up.

 

"Willy got engaged! The Latts got engaged!" He teased, grinning as their nearby teammates joined in. Michael and Tom, on the other hand, exchanged looks, trying to determine what to do. 

 

Tom spoke up first, acting just as amused as everyone else. "They're just trying to deflect it. They're just trying to deflect it on us." He chuckled, covering up his nerves. Their teammates weren't done playing around though.

 

Karl was next to jump in. "Yeah, Latts, show us the ring!"

 

The whole team was joking around but, little did they know, Tom and Michael  _had_ actually gotten engaged a week earlier and that Latta  _was,_ in fact, hiding a thick silver band with five diamonds embedded in it on his ring finger. On the inside of the band was an engraving that read, "Wilson - Latta // December 18, 2014"; the day they had gotten engaged. But the two of them had decided to keep it a secret until after the Winter Classic was over so they weren't distracted. That is, if the team didn't find out before then. 

 

They had to figure out how to deflect it. And fast.

 

Tom's plan to ignore them wasn't working, and more of them were asking to see the ring.

 

Latta piped up next with a furrowed brow, "Why do you think I'd get the ring?" It was a stupid question, considering he  _was_ the one wearing the ring, but it was enough to get the team off of their backs.

 

They were safe, for now. 

 

~

 

It wasn't until a week later that they got caught.

 

They'd just won the Winter Classic, all of them were having the times of their lives. Champagne, silly string, the sounds of the whole team cheering filled the locker room as they celebrated their achievement. As they whooped and chatted, they were all getting dressed into their normal clothes, preparing to go out and celebrate with some well-deserved drinks.

 

Everything was perfect until Michael realized something was missing. His engagement ring. With fear weighing heavily on his heart, Michael rushed over to his fiance, leaning in to whisper in his ear. "Tommy, I can't find my ring.."

 

Tom immediately snapped to attention, facing the older man with wide eyes and hushed tones. "You what?"

 

"I can't find my ring, Tom." Michael repeated quietly, terror slipping into his voice. He never pictured himself as one of those people who would lose his engagement ring, yet here he was. And it wasn't as if he could just face everyone in the locker room and ask if they had seen an engagement ring lying around. How the hell would he explain that one.

 

With a sigh, Tom held Michael's shoulders and looked him in the eyes. "Hey, relax. It's going to be alright, we'll find it." He reassured, and it did settle Michael's nerves a little bit. "Where was the last place you put it?"

 

Thinking back on it, the man replied, "I put it in my equipment bag before the game." It probably wasn't the best idea to put something so small and sacred inside a bag so large where it could get easily lost, but Michael had wanted to be quick about getting it off before anyone could see it. He was deeply regretting it now though.

 

Tom nodded and spoke softly, "Alright, go check the bag one more time, if you can't find it, I'll come over there and look too, alright?" 

 

The older nodded quickly before returning to his locker, his heart pounding. He was worried that the people around them would catch on. If he and Willy were both frantically looking for something, people were bound to ask questions. They had to remain casual, act as though nothing was wrong. So, Michael returned to searching, feeling around throughout his entire bag for the ring, but it continued to evade him. He wanted to cry, in utter disbelief that he'd lost something that meant so much to him.

 

Tom had gotten dressed fully and noticed that Michael was still looking for the little ring, and as he made his way across the room to help him, he froze. Brooks was already beside Latts, and had spotted the shiny band on the floor, leaning down to pick it up before Michael could even notice it. He watched as their linemate lifted the ring up, reading the engraving and reacting with wide eyes. Tom couldn't even move.

 

The older man smirked softly and leaned on the wall beside Latta, crossing his arms over his chest and keeping the ring hidden. "Hey Latts?"

 

Michael's head shot up and he was struck with mild irritation that his frantic search was being interrupted. He need to find his damn ring! "Yeah, Brooks?" He asked, trying to shove back his fear and seem normal.

 

"You know, the team was kind of hoping that you would tell us when you and Willy got engaged." He stated, grinning like an idiot.

 

"W,What..?" The younger sputtered, his eyes going a little wide at the statement. What the hell was he getting at?

 

Brooks let out a chuckle and pulled out the ring, reading the engraving out loud. "Wilson and Latta, December 18, 2014. I'm guessing that was the day you got engaged? Oh wait, don't tell me you two actually got married without telling us." He teased, arching a brow with a shit-eating smirk on his face.

 

Michael couldn't help but let out a giant sigh of relief as he spotted the ring, but he still had some explaining to do. Playfully scowling, he snatched the band from his teammate's hand before slipping it onto his finger. "The day we got engaged.. We were actually planning on telling you guys tonight." He explained, shaking his head. He was still kicking himself for losing the ring in the first place.

 

Tom decided to finally walk over, slipping his arm around his fiance's shoulder and grinning sheepishly to Brooks, who gave him a knowing smirk. "Can't believe you hid it from us for two weeks. We're supposed to be the first to know!" Laich teased with a light shove to Tom's shoulder. 

 

"Yeah yeah," Tom laughed, shrugging. "We figured our engagement would be a cool celebration after the Classic, so that's what we decided to go with." He replied before realizing that they were drawing attention towards themselves, half the locker room staring at them at this point.

 

With a little chuckle and a roll of his eyes, Michael held up his left hand and waved it, showing off the ring. "We're engaged!" He announced, mocking a shrill voice and grinning as the whole room broke out into cheers and they were swarmed with hugs.

 

Should they have hid the engagement? Maybe not, the team always knew exactly how to find out, but their announcement was great nonetheless.

**Author's Note:**

> I had such a great idea of this and then when I started writing, it kind of fell apart, but I hope you liked it either way!
> 
> Here's Latts' ring, save for the engraving obvi  
> https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/59/b5/28/59b528e4aaae2e35e0abf6dc9554d08f.jpg


End file.
